Southern California -- this just in

Expanded 10-mile CicLAvia bike route set for Sunday's big ride

October 3, 2011 | 6:07
pm

After attracting crowds reaching 100,000 during its first two events last year, CicLAvia returns this weekend with an expanded car-free route.

The event -– in which miles of city streets are blocked off to motor vehicles, allowing pedestrians and cyclists to reign for a day -– first appeared as a weekly Ciclovia in Colombia more than three decades ago and was later adopted by several cities in Latin America and the United States.

Los Angeles held its first CicLAvia last October, blocking off 7.5 miles of streets to motor vehicles from East Hollywood to Boyle Heights. It was immediately popular, and the second CicLAvia was in April.

City leaders have scheduled a news conference outside Union Station for Tuesday morning. And officials with Metrolink plan to debut new rail cars with bike racks that will be part of regular service starting this weekend to coincide with the event.

This Sunday's CicLAvia will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and include an additional 2.5 miles around downtown from El Pueblo to the African American Firefighter Museum on Central Avenue.